MONTREAL -- A Montreal man has been charged with possession and distribution of child pornography, say Quebec provincial police.

Investigators specializing in the online sexual exploitation of children arrested 41-year-old Yan Lescard yesterday, the Surete du Quebec said in a release.

Lescard appeared by telephone this afternoon due to the pandemic requirements to do court business remotely.

In addition to possession and distribution, his charges also include having accessed child pornography. Police searched his home and seized his computer equipment for analysis, they said.

Police reminded the public that they're asked to report any situation of potential sexual exploitation of children or teens on the internet to cyberaide.ca.

The specialized unit that was involved works closely with the RCMP and municipal police. Since the provincial strategy to combat the sexual exploitation of children was introduced in 2012, police say, nearly 850 arrests have been made and several hundred victims identified.